We thoroughly enjoyed the 2024 Good News Conference in Minneapolis, MN. The conference was designed in such a way that the vendors could attend the talks and participate in the conference, which was a delight for us. It was a unique opportunity to hear some of the best Catholic speakers in a venue and format that were personal and relatable. I was giddy about sitting two rows behind Chris Stefanick at Mass, and Molly almost fainted when Sr. Miriam James came up and introduced herself to her.

The conference’s theme was Mercy, and it has become a centerpiece of my reflections since the conference. Bishop Barron’s keynote was the highlight for me, though every talk was excellent, with his message that Mercy leads Love. My takeaway was that if you want more love in your relationships, then start showing more mercy in them. It’s the opposite of what we want. We want to ‘feel loved,’ and then we will show mercy. But Christ taught us the opposite. We have a Father who leads with Mercy, and we should too.

Delving into it further since the conference, I’ve come to the conclusion that any place where I am rejecting mercy is a place where I is still rejecting Christ. It is the place of burden, the home of resentments within us. If we want a life that is freed of burdens and set free from resentment, then mercy is our weapon of choice. Christ is our burden bearer; He carries each one for us. And it’s mercy that takes the weight off our backs and onto His. He’s already carrying it, so why do we insist on bearing it too? Choose freedom. Choose MERCY. Embrace a practice of aggressive mercy (forgive before it’s asked for and before it’s desired), and watch how the burdens disappear from your life. Oh, the carefree walk our Lord grants to those who fully embrace mercy.

Sometimes the best way to learn to swim is to just jump in the deep end and flail around until you figure it out. The Eucharistic Congress was the first full-fledged attempt at the Sacred Anchor Artisans mission. We were a hot mess at times, but it gave us an excuse to join our church in one of the most spectacular moments of modern American Catholicism. And it was an experience we will never forget.

For most of my time since my conversion (2000), I’ve always talked about longing to see a church that was rising rather than failing. I’ve longed for the church that was able to convert Rome. I dreamed of seeing a springtime for the Father. But I’d generally thought it would be something I wouldn’t get to see in my lifetime; that instead, it was our job to just plant the seeds and till the soil, in preparation for the rejuvenation of our beloved church, which always seemed like a ‘tomorrow’ thing rather than ‘today.’ Well… here we are. The church that showed up in Indianapolis was a church triumphant. People were inviting people to healing services. 60,000 kneeled in a concrete stadium for hours in silence before Him. And the joy was palpable. People were so, so joyful. HE is here! He is risen indeed! Oh, how our Father must rejoice to see His children celebrating together like this. And the green shoots are so clearly poking through that late winter snow… spring is here people! Spring is here.

We loaded up three vehicles: the 12-seat Transit, a 6-seat F-150, and a smaller car, and took the whole family (plus Josh, who is auditioning to be an eldest son, i.e., dating Cici) and had three hotel rooms 25 minutes from the center. It took close to a week of full-time work by most of us to prepare all the art. And even with that, it was a disorganized mess. We couldn’t get a barcode scanner to work (seriously, it shouldn’t be hard), had trouble getting things printed in time, and had merchandise fall over in the van. But, as always, Molly pulled the rabbit out of the hat and somehow made it all work. Our sales were a bit disappointing (we had a bad location and there were just SO MANY vendors), and meals were HOW MUCH!!! But it was the perfect place to start to understand this ‘thing’ we are trying. Is He with us? Is it just some crazy idea, or is it a new way to make Him smile in our lives? We left Indy still a bit unsure but resolved to try a few more and see how it went.

But the opportunity to do something like this as a family (all of us) and the experience of seeing a church that is finally in spring (early spring… but still spring) was so so worth it. Worth it and more.